A Community Clinic in Nepal

Children standing in front of the COPC building at the COPC building inauguration.

One of South Asia’s poorest countries, Nepal is best known for its diverse topography and its majestic mountain range, the Himalayas. Nidan (निदान), meaning ‘cure,’ is a non-governmental, non-religious, non-political organization in Nepal that focuses on preventive health, primary health care, and maternal and child health in Nepali communities. Nidan Co-founder, Dr. Aditi Giri, received funding from GHETS to help Nidan set-up a Community Outreach Partnership Center (COPC). The COPC has a full-time community health worker and a visiting doctor, and serves a rural village called Dhanauji. Dhanauji is located in the southern plains of Nepal, an underserved corner of the country that has fallen behind in all developmental advances.

With the dedication and perseverance of the local team, it took less than a year for Nidan to implement the project. On March 30, 2013, Nidan inaugurated their COPC in Dhanauji. During the program, speeches were given by members of the community who expressed great enthusiasm and support for the project. The community also responded very positively to the Nidan team. One villager commented:

“Very few people come back to their communities and do something for the people there. I am overjoyed to see such a great initiative in our village. There are so many health problems here, and we have nowhere to turn to. Nidan has given us new hope. I am very happy and hopeful that this clinic will bring positive changes to our village.”

Nidan now plans to partner with a government nursing school- ‘Janaki Nursing College’ to use the COPC as a training center for community health workers. They will also conduct a thorough Community Diagnosis survey to assess the greatest health needs of the population in order to design projects that address these needs.

Dr. Aditi Giri and her team are an excellent example of the type of grantee that GHETS loves to support – local experts with ties to the communities that they serve. Through the work of Dr. Giri and her team, Nidan is invested in creating long-term, sustainable change in Dhanauji and other underserved areas of Nepal.